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Clarity
'CLARITY' Changelings are no longer human, but neither are they fully fae. Upon returning to Earth, most changelings find themselves walking a fine line between two worlds. They cannot deny what they have become, but at the same time, it is their strong connection to this world that allowed them to return, and they feel a need to identify with and be accepted by the world around them. Clarity tracks this delicate balance between the mundane world and the maddening realms of Glamour. A changeling with high Clarity is able to easily distinguish between the two worlds and might even become slightly more adept at spotting supernatural phenomena otherwise hidden from view. By contrast, a changeling with low Clarity finds her perceptions spiraling out of control. She starts having trouble distinguishing her dreams from reality, and starts mixing up elements from the two worlds. She might begin perceiving strange creatures from the Hedge in the ordinary world or incongruously normal fragments of mundane life amid the riot of Faerie. At first these mistaken perceptions are transitory and relatively harmless, but as Clarity slips, they interfere in her life more and more until it is all but impossible to exist sanely in either reality and she is reduced to a mere shell of a being. ''' Breaking Points' Whenever a changeling acts in a way that threatens her Clarity, the psychic turmoil is called a potential breaking point: her actions have threatened to destabilize the delicate balance of her dual existence. A loss of Clarity usually ensues from actions that disrupt a changeling’s ability to think of herself in terms of her human identity as well as her new fae existence. A changeling who commits an act that triggers a breaking point must make a degeneration roll to see if she loses a dot of Clarity. If an act would seem to be described at two different points on the chart, always use the lower of the two ratings to determine the act’s severity. For example, a character decides on an impulse to kidnap a mortal child she sees wandering the woods, an act that would seem to fall under both the “impulsive serious crimes” listed at Clarity 4 and “kidnapping” at Clarity 3. Since Clarity 3 is the lower of the two ratings, it is the rating used to resolve the situation. Starting characters begin with a rating of Clarity 7, to represent the strength of mind and memory that brought them through the Hedge and back into the realm of their birth. However, the world is never exactly what they remembered, and the shock of that realization opens the Lost up to quicker Clarity loss than before. Thus, characters can lose Clarity much more quickly in play than they did during the prelude, with their return being the catalyst. That isn’t to say that all changelings retain a high degree of Clarity during their initial stay in Faerie, of course. It’s just that those who don’t never make it back at all. One theory holds that a changeling is reunited with his severed soul during his escape. The loss of the soul while in Faerie allowed the changeling to endure, but now that the soul is housed once more in the changeling’s body, he is much more vulnerable. This suggestion is controversial among the Lost; it can’t be proved, but neither can it be disproved. Note that Clarity is not quite a system of morals. Acts that trigger a breaking point may be morally reprehensible or not. The true measure is whether or not these acts might awaken psychic traumas that distort the changeling’s perspective, or push the changeling too far down the path of ignoring one of her two distinct selves. Impassioned or impulsive crimes often awaken troubling flashes of the mercurial Others and their ways, for instance. Kidnapping is a particularly dangerous activity for the Lost, as it awakens many a feeling that they would rather keep buried. A failed degeneration roll may also mean that the changeling’s player must make a Clarity roll to resist acquiring a derangement, if the changeling’s Clarity is lower than 8. See the World of Darkness Rulebook, pp. 96–100, for information on derangements. The new derangement is linked to the lost dot of Clarity; the derangement persists until the character recovers the lost dot, regaining her perspective and sufficient Clarity to recover from such a devastating breaking point. Note that a changeling is not immune to breaking points resulting from her being driven to satisfy the needs of her Vice. While changelings are passionate beings, they must still be careful to avoid the temptation to behave in ways that will upset their perspectives, or else the momentary rush gained from indulging their Vices will wind up costing them bitterly. The following is a unique hierarchy of sins for use with Changeling characters. 'ROLL RESULT S' When making a degeneration roll, use only the dice pool associated with the sin committed. Likewise, when rolling Clarity to check for a derangement, do not add other Attributes or traits. You may not spend Willpower to gain a +3 modifier on either kind of roll, though other situational bonuses or penalties may apply. *'Dramatic Failure: 'Not possible on either kind of roll. At no point is a chance roll made. *'Failure: 'On a degeneration roll, your character loses the struggle to maintain his standards of morality when faced with the reality of his sin. He loses one dot of Clarity. On a Clarity roll, he gains a derangement. *'Success: 'Your character emerges from his crisis of conscience with his sense of right and wrong intact. His Clarity is unchanged and he remains as sane as before. *'Exceptional Success: '''Your character re-dedicates himself to his convictions in the wake of his sin, driven by remorse and horror at the deeds he has committed. Not only does his Clarity remain unchanged on a degeneration roll, he gains a point of Willpower (which cannot exceed his Willpower dots). No special bonuses are gained for an exceptional Clarity roll when testing for a derangement. <<<< BACK